


President of the Fan Club

by WatashiWaSushi



Category: Spider-Man - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate universe - Marvel, F/M, Headcanon, Marvel - Freeform, Original Character(s), Originally Posted on Tumblr, Other, Peter Parker - Freeform, Spider-Man - Freeform, alternate origin
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-22
Updated: 2019-06-24
Packaged: 2020-05-16 06:49:48
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,634
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19312855
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WatashiWaSushi/pseuds/WatashiWaSushi
Summary: Piper is just a regular high-school senior with aspirations of becoming a journalist. The best way to get some practice? Using social media to her advantage, making connections, finding out where Spider-Man is... And proceeding to ask her mother for money to take taxis to try and get photos of him. After all, the Daily Bugle has a weird obsession with him, they always want MORE PHOTOS OF SPIDER-MAN, in the words J.J.J. Things.. don't go as planned.





	1. Part One

**Author's Note:**

> I originally wrote this on my Tumblr blog: marvelous-number-zero. I.. don't know if you can see it anymore, because I had some smutty fan-fics on there and Tumblr has all those new rules? I can't fully view it anymore from my other blog. Anyway, this is an 'extended'/re-written version. There'll be smut later, but not right now. 
> 
> Also I live in Colorado and, while I can easily use Google, I've never been to New York, ever, so I'm really sorry if things are inaccurate. 
> 
> Enjoy!

**Part One**

 

 

"Wanna come over after school?" My friend, Jane, looked at me expectantly as we packed up our things. The bell had just rang to signal the end of this period, but there was still one left, unfortunately. 

"No, not today," I replied with a slick smile.

Her expression immediately became suspicious as she squinted her eyes at me. "Now what have you done?"

"What? Nothing!" I replied, faking shock. "Yet.."

"Alright," she said, following me as we left our classroom. She would have to break away soon to head to her own last class, but she kept pace with me, still eyeing me suspiciously. I couldn't hide anything from her, ever. I didn't want to, honestly, she'd always been my best friend and confidant. And, with my recent hobby, she'd become a good source for an alibi. "What're you planning this time?" Jane asked. 

"One of my sources gave me information on Spider-Man, every night, or at least most nights, he lands on the same building in Manhattan."

"Manhattan?" Jane said. She stopped and stared at me. "You can't be serious? You're going to Manhattan, alone, to stake out some random building in case Spider-Man shows up?" she asked incredulously. "Don't you think that's a bit much? At least usually you wander off to a park or something, but.. What if this guy is planning to jump you or something?"

I sighed, but gave her a confident smile. "Hey, I've been talking to this guy for a while, he's never steered me wrong. Besides, that's why I'm going to text you the building address and send you updates every... ten minutes with my location," I bargained. 

"Five."

"Six?"

"Eight." 

I nodded, "Fine. Every eight minutes."

"If the timer reaches nine, I'm calling your mother and the U.S Navy and probably the Avengers."

We both laughed, but we both also knew that she was completely serious. Jane acted like a second mother sometimes, I knew her well enough by now that I believed she would call the Avengers tower non-stop until someone answered just to demand a search party for me. As for my own mother, she was just as protective, but she was also more absent than Jane. Ever since dad died, my mom had had to take on another job, most of the time, I only ever got to see her on the one day a week she had off. Occasional one job would tell her she could miss her shift and we'd have dinner or breakfast together. Either way, I felt as though I'd rarely seen her, but I occupied my time with Spider-Man and Jane. My mom had no issue calling Jane to make sure I was with her or to make sure I'd gotten home safe. Together they formed one.. Super mom. 

Jane waved to me, "Remember, every eight!" And with that she left me at my classroom and hurried off towards her own.

I sat down at my desk just a few moments before the bell was due to ring. Next to me sat Peter Parker who, as usual, had his head buried in his arms, snoozing. I don't know what he did all night, but he certainly wasn't sleeping. Just behind him sat his best friend Harry Osborn, which was convenient for him because he would prod Peter whenever the teacher got to something important. Harry was writing something when I sat, but looked up when he saw me. 

"Hey! Pippy!" he greeted. He snickered, knowing full well that I hated the nickname.

"Harry I swear--" I started.

He confidently cut me off, speaking in a mocking tone, "If you call me that again I'll destroy your whole family." 

"Harry," came the muffled voice of Peter, "leave her alone. Remember when she replaced the dinosaurs in your diorama with pictures of Pippy Long-Stockings? I think she's fully capable of destroying your family."

"He lives!" Harry shouted. 

Peter propped himself, looking exhausted and groggy. "I'm not sure," he replied, but when he turned to look at me, he gave me a smile. "Good morning."

"It's.. almost two in the afternoon," I replied with a smile. Peter wasn't a bad kid, I had no idea why he had to sleep in class, but I couldn't blame him. I'd probably be napping in class tomorrow too. He wasn't too bad looking either. He had sparkling blue eyes and short brown hair. I remembered when he had to wear thick glasses, it got him teased a lot, and he hadn't been able to shake it since he started wearing contacts. If anything, Flash and the other bullies had gotten a little more aggressive. We'd never been close friends, especially since Jane seemed opposed to confrontations, but I'd always hated the way he'd been treated, Harry seemed like the only person who cared enough to stand up for him, but that only got him beat up too. I cared about him, but.. I didn't see myself doing much good if I tried to get in the way. 

Come to think of it, Peter had been holding his own for a while now. They were still relentless, but Peter seemed... Stronger.

The bell rang then and we collectively turned our heads towards the front of the room. "Hello!" started our math teacher, "who's excited for this next exciting chapter of Calculus?"

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

After school I headed for the buses, to my surprise, Peter caught up with me. "Hey," he said. He seemed.. Nervous?

"Uh.. Hi? Are you okay?" I asked. He'd been fine before, the three of us had a moment to chat before the class ended. I hadn't expected to see him, I know we lived a couple blocks apart, but he usually got a ride with Harry. "Where's Harry?" I asked curiously, wondering if they'd somehow gotten into an argument in the few minutes since class had ended. 

"Yeah! I, just.. Wanted to take the bus today!" he replied quickly, smiling. "I was wondering, though," he started. I looked at him, watching carefully. He bit his lower lip and his eyes were thoughtful. 

"Yeah?" I prodded.

"I was wondering if you'd--"

He was cut off by a shout and, when we turned to see who it was, we were met with a football coming right for Peter's face. To my surprise Peter managed to catch it before it could hit him. I breathed with relief and turned angrily back to see who had thrown that, ready to yell at them to be more careful. Then I saw Flash and my heart sank. Of course. It wasn't just a 'oops, my bad' situation, it had been deliberate. 

"Nice catch Parker," he said as he walked towards us, followed by his goofy group of minions. 

Peter didn't respond, he tossed the ball back to Flash. 

"He just paid you a compliment," one of the minions said. Jeremy? Jason? His name probably started with a J. "You could at least be grateful."

"Your ego truly knows no bounds," I said before I could stop myself. They all looked at me as if they'd just noticed I was standing there. 

Flash raised an eyebrow, looking me up and down. The way he looked at me made me feel uncomfortable. "Oh," he said, "what's this? Parker, do you have a sweet, little girlfriend?" 

"N-No," Peter said. "Just leave us alone, we're just going home. There's really no reason to be a dick right now."

Flash snickered, "Fine, run home. If she's not your girlfriend, then.. You won't mind if she stays with me, right?" He reached out as if to put an arm around me, but I stepped back quickly. "What's the matter? I promise you'd have a lot more fun with me than this pussy." 

"Fuck off," I said. "I'd rather swallow Hitler's rusty razor than be near you." It was too late now, right? I'd made him aware of my existence and there was no escaping now. Well, this was my opportunity, right? I'd just been thinking that I had to stand up for Peter more and, with Harry gone, he would need the help. 

Flash's friends 'ooooo'd at that and he glared at me angrily, his eyebrows furrowing. "What a cunt, whatever," he said, waving his hand dismissively. "We have practice, you're not worth our time right now." He turned away and his little goons followed.

My heart was racing, I was actually terrified of Flash Thompson, and I had spoken to him _that_ way. Surely, if I weren't a girl, that would've probably been a death sentence. Then again, who knew what Flash would do now.

"Yikes, Hitler's razor? He might still be feeling that one in the morning," Peter said. He was cringing, but smiling at the same time. "We should go before he changes his mind, I've been unfortunate enough to have that happen." 

We hurried to the buses again and I suddenly remembered that Peter had been on the verge of saying something. "You were about to ask me something," I reminded him, curious. "What was it?"

"Oh that's right!" Just like before, he suddenly became more nervous. Once again, just like before, we were interrupted by an alarm going off on his phone. He squeezed his eyes shut and I thought I heard him say "not now" under his breath, but it was so quiet I couldn't be sure. He checked his phone and heaved a frustrated breath. "I'm sorry Piper... Maybe tomorrow? I have to go."

"But, the bus, don't you have to go home?"

"I.. forgot I had a project, I need to go this way," he said, motioning in a random direction before turning and running off.

"Later Pete.. I guess," I said as I watched him go. With a shrug I boarded the bus and went to a seat towards the back. 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Later that night I found myself on roof of the building my source had given me. I had been texting Jane every eight minutes, as promised, but it was starting to get late and cold. I was trying not to breathe so hard so that my breath wouldn't be visible, but I was getting tired and wondering if I should bail on this quest for now. I remembered showing up to the Daily Bugle with an amateur shot of Spider-Man on my phone. Jameson had paid me ten bucks for it and sent me on my way, but not until after he laughed at my proposition of maybe interning. I figured the more pictures and information I could bring him, the more of a chance I would have. 

Then I heard it. 

_Thwip_

The familiar sound of Spider-Man's webbing, shooting through the night air. I ducked further behind the air vent I'd been hiding behind and prayed he wasn't coming from behind me. Thankfully, I heard him land on the roof out of view. I poked my phone out and saw him on the screen. He was staring at his own phone, I didn't care what he was doing as long as he couldn't see me. I took the picture and grinned at my phone. I couldn't help myself, I immediately sent it to Jane. Lightning fast, she texted back a bunch of excited emojis. I couldn't help myself, I clicked on my blog app where I'd declared myself a Spider-Man fan club president. I posted the picture to it. Technology, keeping us connected with just the click of a button. I heard a little _ding_ come from Spider-Man's phone and I poked mine around the corner again to watch what he was doing. 

I heard him mumble something under his breath and he suddenly turned and looked _right at me_. 

 _Shit, time to flee!_  

I stuffed my phone back into my pocket and took off towards the fire escape I'd come up. I heard him shout. Of course, how could I have thought I could escape from Spider-Man? He was catching criminals a thousand times worse than me. I was nothing more than a fly waiting to be caught in his web. 

I scrambled down the fire escape, but suddenly I was pulled back roughly when his webbing stuck me to the railing. "Busted!" I heard him shout. 

He sounded.. Oddly younger than I'd expected. There wasn't much time to ponder that though, soon enough I was face to face with the masked defender of New York. 

"Well, well, well," he said. "It appears I've caught a peeping Tom." 

 


	2. Part Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm not a peeping Tom, I swear!

"Well, well, well," he said. "It appears I've caught a peeping Tom."

 

I stared into the white eyes of his mask. "What? N-no!" I objected, trying to pull my hand out of the webbing. Jesus, what was this stuff made of? "I'm not a peeping Tom!"

"You know what you're absolutely right. What would you be, a peeping Susan? Peeping... Katherine? What's the female version of Tom?"

"No I mean, like... I'm not peeping on you, kind of!" I tried to say, feeling panicked. Oh God, was he going to call my mom? And as for Jane, if I didn't text her soon she'd begin her freak-out. "Look, I have to go now, can I please?"

He was perched on the rail next to me, I couldn't see any expressions he was making, but surely he had one of those stern teacher looks on him. He tilted his head to the side. "How many pictures did you take and did you tell anyone where you are?" he asked, calmly and yet I could tell he was upset. "Look kid, I get pictures taken of me every day. This is kind of a private place though, I'm going to need you to tell me what exactly you're doing."

"I just... Ah, well I didn't tell anyone where I was going," I lied, "but I did promise my friend I'd let her know I was okay, if I don't text her soon she's gonna start calling the police and stuff." 

"I need you to delete the post you just made, before it can do a lot more damage than you think," he told me. He pulled out his phone and showed me my own blog with the picture that had just been posted. "Someone, somewhere can track it. Do you realize I fight dangerous people every day?" His phone, unsurprisingly, had a crack down the middle and, when he'd first pulled it out, I had noticed that the phone case had a hand drawn picture of his mask on it. 

I'd been yelled at and scolded by adults and teachers, but this was something else completely. At least when I got an F in Gym, I didn't feel like some sort of criminal. Was this a criminal offense? After all, Spider-Man was technically a criminal too, being an illegal vigilante and all. "Well.. Okay, I'm sorry," I said. "Can I have my hand back?"

He sighed and hopped down from his perch. Now, up close, I realized he was actually pretty tall. He was, at least, almost a foot taller than me. He pulled the webbing off with ease and I stared at him in shock. "What the hell? I was pulling it with all my strength, how come you can pull it off so easy?"

"Hi, I'm Spider-Man."

I rubbed my hand, surprised to feel there was no residue left behind. My hand felt a little dry, but in the cold, night air that wasn't exactly unusual. I pulled my phone out quickly, Jane was doing a 'count-down' already. Before I responded to her, I went into my blog and deleted the post. Fortunately, it still said it had zero views, hopefully no one had actually managed to see it. 

_You've got ten seconds before I make those phone calls,_ she said. She must not have seen the post, otherwise she would've sent other frantic messages about being so close to a superhero.

I quickly typed out a message,  _Sorry. I thought something was going to happen, but then it didn't and I got distracted._

_How do I know this isn't the kidnappers?_ she replied. 

_In second grade, you told me that your greatest fear was a lion breaking out of the zoo and coming directly to eat you because they can smell fear._

_Very well. Heading home yet?_

_Uhh... Yeah, I think so. I'll text you when I'm on the subway._

I heard a tapping noise and looked up to see Spider-Man with his arms crossed, tapping his foot impatiently. "Are you done yet? You better not be giving away my location as we speak."

"No no, I'm just assuring my friend that I'm heading home now, honest!"

He sighed and shook his head, "Alright kid, I believe you. Honestly, aren't you a little worried? I save... quite a few girls in this city... You should really be careful, no matter what, some people will want to hurt you." He sounded genuinely concerned and a little sad. Of course. He must see a lot of awful things every day, I can't imagine what he must think of me, wandering around alone at night just to get a picture of him. I suddenly felt horribly ashamed. He had much more important things to do than to be hanging around, scolding me. 

"I'm sorry," I said, looking down at my feet. "It won't happen again Mister.. Spider-Man."

He seemed to brighten up at that, laughing a little. "Mr. Spider-Man was my father, just call me... Spider-Man."

"I'll get a taxi and head home, I'm.. sorry again," I replied, looking back up at him. 

Spider-Man reached a hand out to me and I stared at it, unsure what he was doing. "No way, I'm heading that way anyway, how about you come with?"

"Um... What? You don't know where I live."

He laughed nervously, sounding a little embarrassed. "Right.. Do you take the subway? I can take you there, then."

"You don't mean..."

"Oh I do." I took his hand and he pulled me close, wrapping his arm around my waist. He used his other hand to bring my arm up to his shoulders. "Hold on tight. I promise I won't let you fall," he assured me. 

"Oh sweet baby Jesus, I don't know if I should be doing this."

"In retrospect, you shouldn't do a lot of things," he answered with a chuckle. "Now, thank you for choosing Air Spider-Man. Tray tables up, seatbelts on, and have a lovely flight."

I wrapped both arms around his neck, terrified and excited all at once. Never, even in my dreams, would I have imagined having Spider-Man swing me through Manhattan. Without thinking, when he raised his arm and I heard the _thwip_ , I buried my face in his chest and squeezed my eyes shut. I felt the ground fall away and his arm around my waist tightened. I could hardly breathe, the wind whipped my face and blew my hair back, I didn't dare open my eyes, I couldn't bare the thought of the ground being hundreds of feet away. It was thrilling. I couldn't wait to tell Jane, but I knew I couldn't. I had to keep Spider-Man's secret although I wasn't entirely sure what it was other than him landing on that building. Maybe it was where he lived? I hadn't paid much attention to what the building was, but it wasn't an apartment building for sure. 

I heard Spider-Man's voice in my ear. Loud, but just barely loud enough to be heard over the wind. "You should really open your eyes, this view is outstanding. Also, I haven't felt you take a breath, I want to make sure you're alive."

Against my better judgement, I turned my head away from his chest, took a shaky breath, and opened my eyes. The wind made my eyes water, but once I blinked the tears away, I saw that he was right. The city lights illuminated everything. I could see the Avenger's Tower with it's bright red logo. I could hear the cars honking below, but they looked almost like toys from this height. The city skyline was breathtaking, and not just because I felt scared to breathe. This was... Enchanting. This was what Spider-Man got to see every night. It was beautiful, the way the sky, the lights, the life of the city all seemed to melt together as he whipped through the streets. And then he let us fall a little too far and I squealed and buried my face back into his chest. 

"Ah.. sorry," he said quickly. "I don't fly with other people usually."

"It's fine," I said, my voice muffled. 

I felt us slowing down, the wind was more gentle, and before long we'd stopped. I looked up to see that we'd landed in an alleyway, looking out to the street I could see the stairs leading to the station, people walking past without taking notice of us. "We made it," I said, taking a deep breath. 

It took me a moment, but I realized I was still hanging onto him and he was still holding onto me. We broke away at the same time and I felt my cheeks go red. "Sorry," he said softly, "I hope that wasn't too scary."

I straightened out my shirt and looked away. "No, I mean.. Yes, but it was also beautiful and like.. a once in a lifetime experience. Thank you," I said, smiling. 

He rubbed his neck and I thought maybe he was sore from carrying me. Instead, he said, "Ah.. It doesn't have to be."

I smiled at him, puzzled, "What do you mean?"

"I mean.. If I see you around, maybe I can.. do this again, if I'm not too busy," he said. "You should get going now though. Stay safe, I'll be seeing you."

Without waiting for much of a response, he shot out a string of web and swung away. I watched him disappear over the roof and smiled. I had not only caught a picture of Spider-Man, I'd also gotten to swing through the city with him _and_ had him tell me he'd be "seeing me." I recalled the feeling of having his arm wrapped around my waist, holding me against him... My face grew hot again and I quickly shook the thoughts away. I ran out of the alley and into the subway station, hoping to catch a train heading back to Queens. To my surprise, I was right on time for the next one heading out. I wondered... But it was impossible, he couldn't have known. 

 

From the station to my house wasn't a long walk, one I'd been taking a lot lately. I'd been texting Jane periodically through my train ride, but when she stopped responding, I figured she'd fallen asleep. I hadn't yet told her about my odd interaction with Peter and Flash, but that would be a good distraction for any questions she'd have about my night. It was almost eleven when I saw my house, the front porch light on, but no car parked out front. I had told my mother, as always, that I was heading to Jane's to do homework and hang out, she'd told me to have fun and to please not get home too late. She didn't have to know how late I actually got home, I could just tell her my phone had died and I'd fallen asleep before texting her. 

I froze for a moment when I reached the door. There was a little white piece of paper, attached to the door with a teeny-piece of webbing. I looked around quickly, checking street lamps to see if he'd followed me home, but there was no sign of him. I pulled the note and the web fell away. 

There were some cute drawings of webs and little Spider-Man masks above his writing. "Stay safe," the note read, "From your Friendly, Neighborhood Spider-Man." 

_No way_ , I thought,  _did Spider-Man follow me home?_

The thought didn't exactly scare me though, after all, a superhero knowing your address is pretty useful. If I really did see him again, I'd have to ask him about it though. With the thought of seeing Spider-Man up close again, getting to talk to him, I went upstairs and happily fell asleep the second my head hit the pillow. 


	3. Part Three

The next day when my alarm started going off, I sleepily slapped it and groaned. I shouldn't have been out so late, I felt exhausted. However, as soon as I remembered the events of the night before, I shot up. Holy shit, I'd met Spider-Man. Sure, I'd pissed him off, but he still gave me a sweet ride to the subway station. And was he _flirting_ with me? No way, of course not, but a girl could certainly pretend! It was agony to think I couldn't share all this with Jane. This would be the first secret I'd kept from her in our history of knowing her. Then again, she had a way of getting to me. Not this time though, I couldn't let any of this slip. I could compromise Spider-Man's random building and... Not only that, but it felt like it should be a personal secret just between the two of us. To think, Spider-Man and I had a secret!

 I quickly got dressed and ready for school. I was out of my room in record speed and didn't realize I was actually a little too early for the bus until I was half-way out the door. "What's the rush?" I heard my mom call out. 

I turned around, surprised. She was usually in bed when I was leaving for school, or still at work. "Oh, mom!" I ran back inside quickly and gave her a hug. "What're you doing up right now?"

She chuckled softly. "I actually got home early last night.. Er, morning? I was home by midnight," she said, holding me in the hug. "I could ask you the same thing, I usually hear you running out the door saying 'I can make it, I can make it,' but today I don't think you're late, are you?" We both turned to look at the clock, sure enough, I was up fifteen minutes before my usual time. 

"Oh.. Huh, I guess I was just excited," I replied. 

"For.. School?"

We both laughed and I shook my head. "No, I just.." Well, if I couldn't tell Jane, I most certainly could _not_ tell my mom about what had happened. "I think a guy was trying to ask me out yesterday and I wanted to tell Jane about it!" I said quickly. That wasn't entirely a lie. Peter had been trying to ask me something, maybe I was reading too much into it, but it was as good an alibi as any. 

"Oh really!" my mom said, her eyes lighting up with excitement. "I thought you'd never get a boyfriend or girlfriend, I was starting to worry about you! Tell me about him, who is he? What's his name? Is he cute?"

"Thanks mom," I said, sighing. "He's Peter Parker, he's a nice guy, and... I guess he's pretty cute."

"Peter Parker?" my mom repeated, looking thoughtful. "Little Peter? I always see his Aunt May at the store, she's always telling me about how timid he is and how she's worried about him... I guess the last time I saw him he just looked.. a little nerdy?"

"That's not very nice," I replied, crossing my arms. 

She shook her head with a guilty smile. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it in a bad way, he was just so scrawny I could see why May was worried he would be bullied at school. I'm glad he's coming out of his shell, it's sweet," she told me. "Wait, you said you thought he was trying, does that mean he didn't actually do it?" She looked at me curiously. 

 

 

At school I met with Jane at our usual spot, just near the front entrance. "You're looking awfully chipper," she observed. Immediately, I felt the heat of her stare, trying to read me like a book. "Strange. Considering you didn't find your prize." I had to steel myself, pretend I was made of stone. I couldn't let Jane pick me apart like she always did, I'd promised to not share that picture and there was no way I could give away what happened, not even to my best friend. Onto my plan!

"I have to tell you something," I said, motioning for her to come closer. As she leaned in I told her in a quiet voice about what had happened at the buses the day before. 

"That's it, Flash has to be stopped!"

"Oh please, what're you going to do?" I asked, shaking my head. "Anyway... what if Pete asks me out?"

She sighed, "Yeah, you're right. It's too bad he cock-blocked you."

I started to burn up again. For the love of God, between Jane and my mom, these images weren't going to be going away. "Don't say that! No one's cock was being blocked," I replied.

"Pete's was..."

"Jane!"

"Well! You know it was!"

"He's not like that," I said defensively. 

She grinned, her eyes glinting mischievously. "Oh my, already defending him and he's not even your boyfriend? I never would've guessed you were crushing on Pete, why didn't you ever tell me? I mean.. I guess he's cute. Not my type, but I could see you two."

"I..." I thought for a moment. "I don't know, I don't think I ever had a crush on him. He's nice, but... I liked him in a friendly way. He'd probably be really nice if we were dating, that would be nice." 

"I wish I had a counter, I wonder how many times you can say the word 'nice' about him."

Embarrassment washed over me and I pushed her gently. "Hey, leave me alone," I whined, "I'm just trying to say.. Parker isn't so bad at all. Even if I've never thought of him in that way, I wouldn't really mind getting to spend more time with him."

This time when Jane smiled at me, it wasn't in a mischievous way. As a matter of fact, she was looking at me like a proud parent. "That's actually really sweet. It's like you had a crush on him and you didn't even know it yourself. I'll let it go this time, but if he does end up asking you on a date, I expect details."

I smiled and nodded, "Though... With my luck, he was probably just going to ask me if he could sit next to me on the bus or something."

 

~Meanwhile~

 

"Sooooo, how'd it go?" Harry asked. 

"Good morning to you too," I said as I got into his car. The driver had stopped trying to open the door for me after I refused the first few times. I had no idea how Harry could stand it, having people do stuff for me was kind of creepy. Having to bend down to get into the seat was more painful then I was expecting, but I tried not to wince. The events from the night before ran through my mind. I'd ran into a particularly tough, and large, goon who worked for Tombstone. He'd throne me right into a light post, it felt like my spine was on fire for a few moments before my healing abilities kicked in. I'd have to look into more shock-absorbent tech for my suit. And to boot, when I finally had time to relax, I found Piper stalking me. "What a mess.." I mumbled. 

"Come on, you kind of disappeared on me yesterday. Did you ask her? Did you guys go somewhere?" Harry started asking me.

I sighed and shook my head. "Sorry, things didn't really go as planned," I told him. "First Flash showed up, then after he went away my.. alarm went off to tell me I was forgetting something."

Of course, the truth was that the police scanner was going off. Harry had selective hearing though, so I knew it didn't matter what I told him as long as I mentioned Flash Thompson. He started going off about how 'Flash must be stopped.' I zoned out as he went off on his anti-Flash propaganda, thinking about everything. I had been following Piper's blog so I knew she was a big Spider-Man fan, honestly... I didn't want to admit that that was part of the reason I wanted to ask her on a date. Although, I'd really liked her for some time now, since middle-school at least. It was after I dated Gwen Stacy for a bit. Things ended, not badly, but I remembered feeling heartbroken. We'd never been close, always just casual classmates, but Harry was out sick that day and I must've looked horribly miserable. 

Piper had sat next to me without a word, she merely passed me a fudge pop she'd bought at the cafeteria. We didn't talk at all during the whole lunch period, but I preferred it that way. When the bell rang, she gave me a pat on the back and smiled. "Same time tomorrow?" was all she said. 

That small act meant more to me than she could've known. I was being bullied and when I'd finally found someone who didn't care that I was just some nerd, I'd somehow managed to screw it up. Gwen had been my first girlfriend and the only one up until now. She'd been incredibly sweet, but... I suppose it got to be a little too much when the bullies started picking on her too. It was better this way, I had thought, at least now it would be me and Harry at their center of attention and Gwen could go back to her normal life. Piper had stuck around and even brought her friend Jane along for lunch with me and Harry. We'd grown apart in highschool, but I'd never been able to shake my admiration for her. 

She had complicated things, however. Why did she have to be so nosy? And how had she found out about that place? I would have to find out more about it, but I couldn't do it as Peter Parker. Or maybe I could? Ugh... I couldn't believe that those thoughts were going through my mind. I couldn't ask her out on a date just to try and squeeze her for information. I wanted to actually have a normal date. Crime rate had gone down, I wanted to try to have a normal life. After all, May and Ben kept bugging me about bringing a girl home. I hadn't had much time for any normal activities, aside from homework, and I wasn't being straight with telling them where I was going after school. They'd come to the conclusion of me having a girlfriend and I'd done nothing to dissuade them. 

I'd have to be more careful from now on and maybe take it easy for a couple days. Someone had noticed that I drop by that building and that someone was giving the information away. Unless Piper herself had been following me around? There had to be some way to figure it out. I thought back to our little flight to the subway station. The way she'd held onto me so tightly, the feeling of her weight on my arm. It was all I could do to stop myself from popping a boner, feeling her chest up against me and my hand so close to.. _Pervert_ , I chided myself. Damn these hormones! Were other guys always thinking about girls' boobs or were these powers amplifying normal puberty? 

Harry snapped his fingers two inches from my face. "You still with me Parker?" he was asking, raising an eyebrow. "I know I talk a lot, but you could at least pretend to listen to me? I'm starting to get jealous, Piper's taking up all your thoughts and leaving nothing for me!" 

I pushed him out of my face and smirked, "Sorry dear, you're old news." We piled out of the car, laughing. "Anyway, I'll try again today."

"You'd better. I feel bad getting a girlfriend if I know you'll be sitting home all by yourself," he teased. 

"Who'd date you?"

"Maybe I'll hit up Janey," he said with a grin. 

I shook my head, "I'd hope she would be smarter than to fall for any of your acts."

"Now's your chance! Go!" he said suddenly, he shoved me and took off running. 

Confused, I looked around and was getting ready to run after him when I spotted Piper and Jane standing near the front steps of the school. Bastard! He'd abandoned me again. I was going to try and sneak past, but Jane saw me and said something to Piper. Damn... I needed time, I couldn't ask her out like this, last time hadn't gone so well. I heard Jane snicker before she bolted up the stairs, leaving Piper standing alone. She was looking a little red, just like last night, but she waited for me to catch up to her. I hadn't been this nervous last night, talking to her through my mask. If only I could act like Spider-Man at school too. Fuck it, I'd just have to do it quick, like peeling off a band-aid. 

 

~~~~~~~~~

 

"No, Jane, wait!" 

She snickered at me and took off. She'd seen Peter after she watched Harry run off up the stairs. Being the good friend she is, she left me alone in case Peter wanted to try to ask me out again. 

"H-Hey Pete," I said nervously, "how's it going?" 

He was looking nervous again, chewing on his lip. "Great! I..." he started. "Do you want to go out with me?" he asked quickly. 

Sweet! He really did want to ask me out yesterday! I had to play it cool, I couldn't act like I'd been waiting for this. "Y-yeah, of course!" I said, stumbling over my words. 

"Great!" he said again, "I'll come pick you up after school? I mean.. I don't have a car, but I mean there's this pizza place, you're only a couple blocks away right? I was thinking we could walk to the station and then head there? It's in Manhattan!"

Manhattan! Perfect! Maybe... Maybe I could come up for a reason to stay around there after our date. Okay.. That was one of the worst thoughts I'd ever had. Here was Peter Parker asking me on a date and I was more excited about having the opportunity to see Spider-Man.. I'd have to tell Jane and have her punch me or something. "That sounds great, Pete!" 

 


	4. Part Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't think I can add warnings for specific chapters without adding it to the whole story, so:  
> WARNING: This chapter contains non-consensual sexual assault. I'll put asterisks at the part. I don't want to upset anyone by just popping it in, so I want to warn anyone reading this! Rather.. nothing detailed or anything happens, I just didn't want to offend anyone if it was too much without warning.

School couldn’t end fast enough. Jane left me with instructions on which details, exactly, she wanted to know. If we hold hands, are his hands soft, because they look soft? However, she doesn’t care if we make out. She does care to know if he’s good at it though. After school she walked me over to the buses, Peter had put his phone number in my phone and we’d already been texting back and forth. He said he would be getting his ride from Harry, but that he’d come pick me up around 4:30. 

 Jane left me to run off to her own bus. Before I could get to mine, I felt a hand pull me back by the collar of my shirt. I turned, ready to start yelling at whoever it was. Unfortunately...

 “I heard something interesting,” Flash said. I looked to see that he was alone today, none of his minions were anywhere to be seen. “Little Peter Parker asked you on a date?”

 “Word travels fast,” I muttered. I wriggled free from his grasp and took a step back. “Why don’t you mind your own business? I need to get on my bus.”

 “Parker’s business is my business. I just thought I’d give you fair warning...” he said, giving me the same look as yesterday, once again succeeding in making me uncomfortable. “I’m not leaving him alone just because he’ll be with a girl. It just means that you’ll be caught in the crossfire, you know? That’s why Gwen stopped hanging around him.”

 Gwen Stacy. She was pretty, popular, and sweet, she’d had a huge crush on Pete in middle school. Unfortunately, after working up the courage to ask him to be her boyfriend, Flash and his bully friends targeted her as well. Stupid cowards, picking on a sweet girl just because she liked a guy he hated. I’d started hanging around Peter more after she broke up with him, he looked so sad. Gwen wasn’t used to being bullied, she was one of those people who liked being liked. Now she was on the student council, things had worked out for her. I grit my teeth together and glared at him. 

 “I don’t care about that, Gwen had a pretty high reputation to uphold,” I replied, “I’m more under the radar.”

 “Not under mine.” 

 “You’re pathetic. Picking on Peter for no reason and trying to scare people away from him. I’m glad Harry stands up to you, more of us should.” The football player towered over me, but I still looked him right in the eyes. My heart was pounding in my chest, every instinct was trying to tell me to run, but I wouldn't run from him. "Why don't you just leave both of us alone?" I told him, crossing my arms over my chest.

 He seemed un-intimidated, his eyes were cold when he looked at me. "You know, you're an attractive girl. You can have a lot more fun with me than with Parker," Flash said, inching closer to me. His eyes were full of.. something I couldn't explain because I'd never seen that look before. It was scary. 

"Leave me alone," I said. "There's a teacher coming."

The strange expression left his eyes and turned to surprise. He turned around to look and I took the opportunity to slip away and run to where my bus was waiting. I boarded quickly and headed back to my usual seat. When I looked out the window, I saw Flash glaring at me, but he turned away looking annoyed and heading off. _What a creep_ , I thought. 

 

It was 4:35 and I hadn't gotten a text from Peter for ten minutes. I couldn't tell if I was overreacting or if I should genuinely be worried. This was my first date, was it okay to be five minutes late? I was waiting on my front porch, looking around every few seconds, hoping to see him appear soon. I looked back down at my phone, hoping he'd have some sort of excuse. Finally, I heard Peter's voice calling out to me. I looked up to see him running towards me, so I walked up the sidewalk to meet him. "Peter! I'm so glad you're here," I said when he reached me. 

He laughed softly, "Of course I'd be here, I just got a little held up before I left. You know, May and Ben were asking all kinds of questions."

"Oh, yeah, I'm lucky my mom's at work, but she has been texting me every time she gets a break," I told him. 

He motioned for me to follow him and together we started walking towards the station. "So.. Do you go to Manhattan much?" Peter asked as we walked. 

I shook my head, "N-no, not really. Just every now and then, how about you? I mean, if you know a good pizza place, does that mean you head up there often?"

Peter looked like he had to think about the answer. "I go there pretty often, I guess, but just to get some photographs," he replied after a few moments. 

The way he said it made me wonder if he didn't go there for other reasons, but I didn't want to pry, considering I'd lied to him about it too. Besides, it was our first date, maybe after a few  more we could give away our deep secrets. Could I ever tell Peter about my meeting with Spider-Man? He seemed more reasonable than Jane, but then again, I didn't know him all that well just yet. 

 

At the pizza place we talked about a lot of things over a pepperoni pie. He told me about his Aunt and Uncle, how they took him in after his parents died in a plane crash. I told him about my own father's death a few years ago and how my mom was often working. We told each other about what we wanted to do after highschool. I wanted to be a journalist, but I didn't tell him about giving J.J photos of Spider-Man. He said he wanted to be a photographer, but maybe a scientist since he really liked doing little projects on his own. I asked him about what those were, but he tip-toed around the subject. I didn't want to pry, maybe he'd let me see them eventually. 

I forgot about my original plan of finding an excuse to wander off in Manhattan alone. By the time we were ready to go, I'd decided against that plan. Hanging out with Peter was a lot of fun and I didn't even want to go home. The sun was almost setting now and Peter mentioned that we should probably head back. At least we could talk more on the subway, but as we walked, the same alarm as before went off on his phone. He pulled it out quickly and his brows furrowed with concern. 

"Is.. everything okay, Pete?" I asked.

"Huh..." he looked at me, his blue eyes shadowed with worry. "I hate to do this, but.. I really have to go. Can you go to the subway alone?"

"What? Is everything alright?" I asked again, "where are you going? Do you need help?" Where could he possibly have to go in Manhattan? As for getting back to the subway, I knew the way, but I was more worried about what he might've gotten himself into. 

"Everything is fine," he replied, giving me a half-hearted smile. "I'm really sorry, will you be okay?"

"I'll be fine, but.. Well, let me know when you get home, at least," I told him, frowning. 

"I'll be fine," he said too. "Hey, I had a lot of fun, thank you so much for saying yes!"

I smiled at him, "It was a lot of fun. I.. Let's do this again, alright?"

He nodded, "Of course."

I bit my lip and, before he could turn away, I put my hands on his shoulders. He looked surprise, but when I stood on my tip-toes and gave him a kiss on the cheek, his surprise turned to a cute, nervous look. "I can't wait, I'll see you at school tomorrow," I said, letting him go.

He looked like he was slowly turning into a tomato. "Th-thanks, see you tomorrow!"

With that, he turned and ran off in the opposite direction. I couldn't even begin to think of what exactly he was doing, but as long as he wasn't in trouble or getting hurt. Now that he was gone, I thought of Spider-Man again. He had to be around here somewhere, right? Manhattan was his haunting ground and he'd been the one who said he'd see me again. Maybe walking around Manhattan wouldn't be that bad, just for a while. And if I didn't see him in an hour, I'd just head home. I started wandering aimlessly, making sure every now and then that my phone was working so that I could use it to get back. The sun had set and the night lights of the city were on. The streets were still as crowded as they were during the day. I checked my phone again, there were no texts, Jane had promised to leave me alone until the date was over and I hadn't yet told her we were done. Maybe I should let her know..

I shrugged and figured it was high time for me to head home. It would be hard to explain if I saw Peter on the train home, he'd expected me to head home right after he said goodbye. He seemed worried for me, I didn't want him to think I was up to no good and I didn't want to explain that I wanted to see Spider-Man again. I pulled up the map on my phone and sighed, I'd wandered a little too far, it was going to take me a while to get back to the station. I started walking, taking in the sights of Manhattan. I never paid much attention when I was here, I always had a single goal and didn't think of anything else. Seeing it like this was almost a nice as seeing it from the sky. 

I was distracted by a street performer when suddenly I felt a hand grip my wrist. "Ow, hey!" I shouted. 

I felt something pressed against my back and a low voice said, "Don't turn around. Just follow along, you don't have to get hurt."

 _Shit, of course_. I let the mysterious man lead me away from the crowded street and into an alleyway. I was scared, my heart was going to beat right out of my chest, he was grabbing my right arm and of course my phone was in my right pocket, so I couldn't reach it without it being obvious. "Um.. I really don't have any money," I tried to say.

**The man didn't say anything and pulled me further into the alley until we were out of the eyesight of the street. Hadn't anyone noticed? "Don't make any noise. Like I said, you really don't have to get hurt."

 "No, no! Just let me go," I cried out, hoping someone would hear me. He let me go and I thought he was done, but instead he pushed me against the wall. I tried pushing him away, I couldn't see his face, he was wearing a hood and the alley was too dark. He started going for my pants suddenly and I realized it hadn't been money that he was after. I tried pushing him away, but each time he smacked my hands away like my struggles meant nothing. He must've gotten tired of my struggling, because he pulled his arm back, his hand in a fist, ready to hit me. I braced myself, but.. It took too long.** 

I looked up to see that my assaulter had been pulled back. To my relief Spider-Man had made his appearance. Now, of all times, but there he was. He quickly subdued the person and had him down on the ground. I watched as Spider-Man pulled back the man's hood. Whoever it was, Spider-Man didn't give any indication, instead he punched him once in the face and webbed his arms to the sidewalk. 

He turned and, without a word, he grabbed me and we shot into the air. I cried out, startled, but soon we were stopped on top of the building. He let me go and I pushed back, stepping away from him. "Are you okay?" he asked.

I was crying, tears were blurring my view, but now I finally let the sobs go. I sank to the ground, crying, "Th-thank you." I barely got the words out through my sobs, but Spider-Man didn't seem to care. He knelt down in front of me, held out his arms, and I couldn't help but lean into him. He let me cry into his arms, I didn't know how long it was, but I couldn't stop myself anymore. 

It could've been hours before the tears finally started to dry. I had heard sirens down below, had the man been picked up by the police? It didn't matter, I didn't want to see him ever again, I didn't want to go down there. I didn't want to talk to them, didn't want to tell them what had happened. How could I have been so stupid? I should've just gone home. I could've been safe in bed by now, texting Jane, watching TV. What was I doing? Acting like a stupid fan-girl, hoping to see a superhero. I should've listened to Peter and gone home. How would I face him? 

"If.. if you don't go talk to them, that guy won't stay in jail for more than a day.." Spider-Man said softly. 

"I just want to go home," I cried at him. "I really just don't ever want to see him, I don't want to be here." 

"I... Well... I just want to help you."

"Please let me go home."

"Okay," he replied, without protesting anymore. I knew he was right, but... How could I explain any of this to anyone? I just wanted to go home and try to forget everything. I wanted to be normal again, I could wake up in the morning and start the day over. "Everything.. will be fine," Spider-Man told me. He stood, holding his hand out so he could lift me up. 

I wiped the tears away from my eyes, sniffling. "I'm fine, I'm fine.. I mean, it could've been worse right?" I said, trying not to sound so weak. "I really just.. want to be home right now. I want to pretend this didn't happen."

"Uh.. well.. Are you sure?"

"Y-Yeah." I mean, nothing had happened, right? So many other girls had horrible things happen to them, the guy hadn't even hit me. Nothing was wrong, why was I crying? 

Spider-Man wrapped an arm around me and I wrapped my arms around him. It didn't send the same thrill through me, this had been what I was looking for, but.. Not like this. Despite my feelings, as soon as we were in the air I grabbed him even harder. We were going the opposite direction from the subway station. Over the wind I asked, "Wh-where are we going?"

"I figured the subway wouldn't be the best place right now. There's a ferry. We can hitch a ride and then I can take you to your house."

 

He made good on his word. We stopped on a ferry and he sat quietly with me, not talking, just sitting near me. I appreciated it. He actually walked me to my house instead of swinging. We got a few looks, but there were less people on the streets here than in Manhattan, so we went largely unnoticed. When we got to my house, he grabbed my hand and held me back. "Are you.. sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, of course."

"You know.. Your friends, I'm sure you can talk to them." 

"I know."

"Goodbye, please.. be safe."

I pulled my hand away and gave him the best smile I could before turning and running up into my house. I threw my phone onto my desk and crawled into bed without changing, I really just wanted to curl up and sink into my bed. I tried hard to calm down, to close my eyes and drift into sleep, but I kept thinking about what could have happened. What if Spider-Man had never showed up? Manhattan was so big, what if he’d been stopping a robbery or something? I had been lucky, but I couldn’t stop thinking. I still didn’t know how I’d face Peter, we’d had such a good date, how could I have been so stupid as to go wandering off alone? 

When Spidey had dropped onto the ferry, I thought we’d get in trouble, but the only man who saw just shrugged it off. Maybe he was used to it. We’d sat in a secluded area, quietly. I wondered what he was thinking, maybe he was tired of wasting his time on me, this was twice in a row that I’d just caused trouble. He probably hated me now, maybe I’d just stay in Queens forever and never go back, that would be one less person for him to have to worry about. 

I never fell asleep. I heard my mom come home around 4am, when I heard her footsteps coming up the stairs, I hopped out of bed and hurried to open my door. 

“Holy shit!” she gasped under her breath when she saw me. “You scared me, are you okay?” 

I was glad she didn’t ask about my night, hopefully it was too dark for her to see I wasn’t in pajamas. “Uh.. I’m feeling sick, do you mind if I stay home?” I replied, keeping my voice low. I didn’t fake sick often, but I hoped she wouldn’t see through it. 

“Oh yeah.. go to bed, I’ll bring you some soup before I leave,” she said. She came the rest of the way up the stairs and gave me a hug. She held on for a while, but didn’t say anymore. She said goodnight and went to her own room, leaving me alone again. 

I finally changed and went back to bed. Now, knowing my mom was right in the other room, my mind started to shut off and I finally fell asleep. I woke up later when she came into my room, the clock on my nightstand said it was noon, but it felt like I’d only slept a few hours.

”You do look terrible,” she said, setting a bowl down on my nightstand. “Try to sleep more, I’ll ask about your date when you feel better. I hope it went well.”

”It did... have fun at work,” I replied groggily.

She smiled, “Sure.”

My eyes closed when she brushed a hand through my hair and, before I knew it, I was back asleep.

 

 


End file.
